Tag Archives: sexual abuse

After posting Kate’s story of being sexually abused by TB Joshua’s pastor in Athens, “Sandra” got in contact with her story. Sandra previously served at SCOAN Athens as the right hand of the pastor.

Sandra’s Story

As an ex-member of SCOAN and of the Athens Branch, I want to confirm that everything Kate has said is true. I was Andreas right hand and worked extremely closely with him until I discovered the shocking things that these girls were going through. 2 of the abused girls came to me for help, despite the fact that it wasn’t permitted to share your secrets with anybody but Andreas and his wife. The girls were in a terrible state, contemplating suicide and completely overpowered by the terrible actions of this man. I was devastated by the way he justified his abuse to the girls.

Andreas told them that it was a blessing to have sexual contact with him, using verses from Songs of Solomon to justify himself, that he was doing these things to protect them from having relationships with other boys and that as their mentor, he had a right over their bodies. One thing which Kate forgot to mention is that he once told her “I am going to find you a nice boy to marry in the church, and then we can continue our relationship. You will keep the balance in your marriage as I am keeping it in mine”.

When I confronted him about it, he begged me for forgiveness and would then continue these dirty actions in secret until he was exposed again. Eventually I found out about a third and fourth girl who were being abused at the same time.

When we exposed these matters, Andreas fled back to Nigeria. He said that TB Joshua would handle the situation. When Kate went to Lagos with a letter signed by 8 of us, we expected TB Joshua to condemn the actions of Andreas and help us. Instead we were totally devastated. Tb Joshua gave an answer that was chilling. (It is all written in Kate’s article). Following our hundreds of emails to him, begging him for help, he called me one evening. He said the following to me:

‘I don’t want to lose you. I know you. I want you to stay by Andreas’ side now that he is coming back. As a wise man, you know like Harry. And you will be by my side too when I come to Greece’.

It was shocking that TB Joshua was ready to send Andreas back as a ‘wise man’ after everything he had done. He showed no consideration towards the pain we were going through. I was in a terrible state with a huge weight on my shoulders, and TB Joshua didn’t help me. We had to take matters into our own hands and go and tell his wife. Our purpose was to console her, to be there for her but she chose not to believe us. We were banned from attending meetings and called liars and betrayers.

The fruit of this ministry is lies. Andreas lived his life based on lies. He lied to his wife, he lied to the congregation and he lied to his workers. He would humiliate workers in meetings and expose them for being sexually impure, but then bring girls back to his office and sexually abuse them.

My question is: How did Andreas manage to do everything he did and have a clear conscience? It’s interesting to note that the systematic way Andreas abused girls is exactly the same way Bisola Johnson describes Tb Joshua abusing her. There does indeed appear to be a culture of sexual abuse at the SCOAN.

Below we feature the second part of a testimony from a young lady we’ll refer to as Kate who claims to have been sexually abused by the Pastor entrusted by TB Joshua to lead SCOAN Athens. As well as revealing horrifying details about life at SCOAN Athens, the story also shows a pattern of sexual abuse and coverup throughout SCOAN, coming from TB Joshua himself. Before writing off this story as false, readers should be aware that statistics show false rape claims are incredibly rare (between 2% and 8%). Considering the fact there are numerous women who allege TB Joshua or the Athens pastor have sexually abused them, the probability of them all being false is almost inconceivable. If you take the side of the alleged victim rather than the alleged perpetrator, statistically speaking you are far more likely to be on the right side.

Kate’s story part 2

As young people in the church, we were discouraged from having time to think. Andreas’ wife once said to me ‘As young people, your mind is always busy with negative, evil thoughts, with temptations. You need to work, work, work for God so that you don’t have time to think. Your work for God is your relationship with God’. This is another damaging teaching from the SCOAN. It is how much you ‘’work’’ for God that determines your standing before God. And by work they mean editing videos of TB Joshua or working for Emmanuel TV.

By November 2013, I was losing my mind.I gradually discovered that I was not the only girl being abused. This was going on with three other young women at the time. I confided in an older woman in the church called Sandra* and we went to confront Andeas. When we went to his office he said that I had a problem, that I needed prayer because I had seduced him. When Sandra* left, he told me that it was an evil spirit in me that had made me tell her. I told him that he had never been a true pastor for me and that he had totally destroyed my spiritual life.

When the matter became known amongst a small group of us, Andreas panicked and admitted that he had he begged TB Joshua to call him back to Nigeria. Before he left, he said to me ‘you are incapable of living without me. You can never remove what you have in your heart for me.” I then asked him ‘How do you think God sees our relationship?’ He looked at me as if I’d said something weird and said ‘God? He sees it as wrong. But as long as He is first in our hearts, God doesn’t pay attention to this kind of thing. And anyway, you cannot remove what you have in your heart for me.’

One of the main ways SCOAN have tried to cover up this issue was by preaching ‘forgiveness’. Andreas made sure that every sermon after this confrontation was about how if we don’t forgive, God would never forgive us. And by forgive he meant never speak about it, never tell anyone, suffer in silence.

Andreas’ wife appeared to know nothing, and when he left for Nigeria, most members of the branch was still under the impression that he was a wonderful, exemplary pastor. Once he was gone, I knew the situation couldn’t go on with this level of hypocrisy, so I booked a flight and went to Lagos to report him to TB Joshua. In my mind I was so sure that as a man of God, he would have the answer and everything would be alright. I was very mistaken.

After asking to see TB Joshua for 2 days, I was finally let into his office. I brought with me a letter signed by 8 people in Athens. In the letter we begged TB Joshua to take action, to condemn what Andreas had done and to confirm that he would never allow him to return to Athens.TB Joshua said the following shocking sentence:

‘What happened to you happened in the house of God, which means God is aware. If it had happened out in the world, it would be very bad, but because it happened in the house of God, it’s ok’.

Surely sexual abuse is terrible wherever it takes place, ESPECIALLY in the house of God?

He then looked at me very sternly and warned me ‘not to discuss it with anyone’. He said I should tell the people in Athens that the past is over and they should not think about it anymore, that he didn’t even need to read the letter. We should all move on.

This was TB Joshua’s first attempt to cover up the issue. Nothing changed after that. Andreas continued to be a disciple, his wife continued to run the branch without the knowledge of anything and we were all supposed to continue just as we were before. I now realize his incapability to deal with my own situation is because he was incapable of dealing with his own unresolved situations.

I returned to Athens and we up telling his wife the whole truth. She refused to believe us, we were banned from the church and called liars, prostitutes and betrayers of the ministry. SCOAN members all over Greece were split between believing us and not believing us. Most people called us blasphemers. When seen on the street we would be given dirty looks by church members. This was going on for a month and TB Joshua was doing nothing about it, despite our hundreds of emails asking for help. One evening, we were shocked by a phone call from TB Joshua himself. He said the following ‘I want you to be by Andreas’ side when he returns to Athens, you know, as a wise man like Harry’. We felt defeated. How could Andreas be sent as a wise man after all this? He tried telling us that he would send Andreas as a wise man in order to silence us with the fear that he would return as a holy man of God. When he saw that this tactic didn’t work, he sent Wise Man Harry to claim that TB Joshua never knew him in the first place. This showed terrible judgment and confusion on the part of TB Joshua.

After I told my parents the truth, they wrote an email to TB Joshua threatening to sue the ministry and Andreas if action was not taken and we were not justified. They demanded that a representative of the branch who can speak Greek be sent to sort the situation out. Hundreds of emails had been sent by SCOAN Athens members but TB Joshua had done nothing about it. The moment he was threatened however, he responded. 2 days later Wise Man Harry was sent to Athens. We were hopeful because we thought we would finally be vindicated- but no such thing.

Wise Man Harry stood on stage at about 12pm on Sunday June 1st 2014. He delivered a sermon of lies to the congregation. TB Joshua totally disassociated himself with the branch and denied having any connection with Andreas. There was no mention whatsoever of sexual abuse or the names of any girls. Wise man Harry was told by TB Joshua to say that it was Andreas’ arrogance and anger that led him to open the branch without the permission of TB Joshua. It’s interesting how for 8 years, SCOAN claim that they had no control over the Athens branch and that it was opened by Andreas on his own. If that is truly the case, then why are there videos all over youtube saying ‘TB Joshua has sent the anointed water to the Athens Branch? Why is there a whole DVD of wise man Harry holding a service at the Athens Branch? Why did they have the control to close it 8 years later? Why were the tithes of the branch sent to Nigeria and used for TB Joshua’s expenses? Why were most of the church members Emmanuel TV partners? Why did TB Joshua call us from time to time during a Sunday service in Athens and ‘greet his people’ over loudspeaker? And why up until June 1st was there a section on the SCOAN website called ‘Branches’ which included Athens with the address and phone number?

Harry’s message brought tension and confusion throughout the congregation. When people stood up and protested to what he was saying he said ‘do not blaspheme the name of Jesus Christ’, after he had just told lie upon lie to cover the reputation of the ministry. You can listen to the full audio recording and read the transcription in the other article. Shortly after this, a riot broke out amongst SCOAN followers and armed riot police had to come and break it up. By the next day, the Athens Branch was closed down and outraged members gathered outside to ask for their money and possessions back, having made huge financial investments in the church over the last eight years.

Unfortunately this is just the way SCOAN deal with their issues. TB Joshua will pay any price for the sake of his reputation. He did not care for the broken hearted. He totally betrayed his faithful followers. He will stop at nothing to protect the name of the church while people suffer. It is a dangerous organisation. I want to mention that I was a young person who had given my heart entirely to this ministry. I waited patiently for TB Joshua to be the man of God he claims to be but I was devastated and my life was turned upside down by the level of deception and hypocrisy.

This ministry is very good at putting on a very attractive performance but unfortunately that’s all it is. At the end of the day the life and soul of this church is about the worship of TB Joshua alone. The moment you start to think for yourself is when you become a threat to them.

I know that SCOAN will respond to this article with it’s usual attacks. There are disciples in the ministry who are specifically dedicated to this activity. This is the reason they film your confession when you first join the church. They hold you hostage with the knowledge that your intimate confessions could be made public at anytime in the future. I am sure they will do the same with me but it’s a price I’m willing to pay.

It’s hard to believe these serious allegations when you have dedicated your heart and soul to the ministry. I know I once read TB Joshua Watch and refused to believe a word of it. SCOAN will always say that people speaking against the ministry are of the devil. It’s not true. We are all people who have had a terrible experience and want to warn others. It does not benefit me in any way to share my experience with you. If anything, it’s incredibly risky and difficult. But if this can help someone then it’s worth it.

Below we feature a testimony from a young lady we’ll refer to as Kate who claims to have been sexually abused by the Pastor entrusted by TB Joshua to lead SCOAN Athens. As well as revealing horrifying details about life at SCOAN Athens, the story also shows a pattern of sexual abuse and coverup throughout SCOAN, coming from TB Joshua himself. Before writing off this story as false, readers should be aware that statistics show false rape claims are incredibly rare (between 2% and 8%). Considering the fact there are numerous women who allege TB Joshua or the Athens pastor have sexually abused them, the probability of them all being false is almost inconceivable. If you take the side of the alleged victim rather than the alleged perpetrator, statistically speaking you are far more likely to be on the right side.

Kate’s story part 1

I’m writing this article because I want to share my experience of SCOAN. I am yet another person who has seen the truth behind this organization and it’s necessary that I put my story out there. I know that SCOAN are going to respond by humiliating me as they always do to ex members (via the Watch TB Joshua Blog) but if I can share this story and help even one person see the truth about this church, it’s worth it.

As you have most likely heard, on June 1st 2014, the Greek branch was shut down. Wise man Harry paid a visit and told the members of the congregation that it was never a branch in the first place. It was opened without the permission of TB Joshua by the disciple Andreas and his wife. To our astonishment, he said that if one were to look at the legal documents, TB Joshua’s name would not be found anywhere. Andreas opened the branch on his own accord, with a lot of anger and disrespect towards TB Joshua. In fact, he said, TB Joshua does not have any branches anywhere in the world. You can listen to a live recording of this attached in another article.

This was very confusing for the members of the Athens Branch, myself included. I had been an active member of both the London Branch and the Athens Branch for over three years and now their existence was being denied. TB Joshua was completely disassociating himself from the events that led to the closure of the branch. I am now going to explain what those exact events were.

The Athens Branch was in fact a fully functioning official branch of SCOAN. Wise man Harry had been given instructions by TB Joshua to lie. I was amongst the youth that worked full time in the church and was very close to Andreas (who had been running the branch for eight years). I was also one of the 11 girls who had been sexually and emotionally abused and manipulated by Andreas. The previous article referring to the closure of the branch states it was only 4 girls, however now we have discovered that at least eleven girls in the youth have been harassed sexually by Andreas. Before it began, he spent months creating a close relationship of trust with me and gave himself the place of a mentor in my life. He used the title ‘man of God’ to force people into doing what they didn’t want to do.

Looking back on it now, it’s as if his tactics were learnt from TB Joshua. After listening to Bisola Johnson on Deception of the Age documentary describe the ways that TB Joshua sexually abused her, I was shocked to find that it is exactly the same as my own and other girls’ experience. In fact, one of the first things Andreas told me was that TB Joshua slept with a girl and she left the ministry for something that was actually a blessing to her. He said ‘any contact you have with an anointed man of God is a blessing’. He also once told me ‘sex is not bad, it’s the love of sex that is bad’. He actually used the Bible to justify his actions and read from Songs of Solomon.

And while this was going on, I wasn’t the only girl. A few years prior to this, [———details removed due to ongoing investigation———].

He would very frequently have girls in his office for hours. While my own abuse was taking place, I had no idea other girls were undergoing the same terrible situation. It was sick how he could do what he was doing with young women right before service, and then come out and preach to the congregation about holiness and putting God first. Bisola Johnson describes that TB Joshua would abuse her before service and then come out and preach as well. It’s as if it was a tactic that Andreas picked up from TB Joshua. Anytime his wife was around he would be cold and distant with us, ignoring us. The moment she left he would become a different person. His ways were manipulative. With me he would often be very warm and welcoming or extremely cruel and condescending- never in between. We all spent a lot of time wondering what we had done wrong. Before workers’ meetings took place, he would prepare untrue accusations and make one worker to publicly falsely accuse another. A disciple later told me that this is a common practice used in SCOAN to test people’s characters and faith. Nobody in the church trusted each other. We were all afraid of being reported- another characteristic of SCOAN. Andreas would also discourage me from having a close relationship with any of the other girls and say that he was the only one that should know my secrets. I now realise that this was a tactic to avoid us talking to each other about the things he was doing.

I have heard the stories of three different women who will remain anonymous that have been sexually abused by TB Joshua. Like Andreas, he also used strange excuses to justify his actions. In some instances, he has said that having sexual relations with him will purify a woman. As someone who has been through it myself by his disciple Andreas, I know that you do not wake up one morning and make something up like that. To go from being someone that has given their life to the church to turning against the church, something must have happened. SCOAN call it ‘blasphemy’ and that you are demon possessed if you speak against the ministry. This is a way of keeping the members brainwashed and in fear. In fact, a few members of the ministry who I told my story to, although they believed me, have now shut me out of their lives. They are so afraid of turning against a ‘man of God’ that they would rather live a lie than face reality. This is one of the key characteristics of cults.

I asked Andreas to stop this sick relationship twice and he would always start it again. It’s as if he was convinced it was the right thing to do. When I eventually took this issue to Nigeria, TB Joshua’s inability to deal with the situation made me realize that it was because he couldn’t deal with his own urges and lack of control. I will move on to this later.

SCOAN international branches have been dropping like flies in recent years. Once there was a branch in London, Capetown, Athens and Ghana – today, only Ghana remains. This is set to change at the end of this month when a new Greece branch opens: SCOAN Thesselonica. We’re not aware of any official word from SCOAN yet, but clearly the branch has the official nod from them because “Wise Man” Harry is featured at the inauguration.

Now is a good time to remind our readers what happened to the last SCOAN branch in Greece. You can read Jeremiah report of the scandal that brought down the church here. In the next couple of days we will bring a report of Wiseman Harry’s final visit to SCOAN Athens when he was sent by TB Joshua to shut down the church and falsely claim that it had never officially existed. Following that we will feature a testimony from one of the young ladies who claims to have been sexually abused by the SCOAN Pastor.

Recovery

Gradually, my life began to resemble a fairly normal existence. I began to realise there was a lot more to life than what I had been living. I thought back to the wonderful experiences I had had in my life pre-SCOAN and began to focus on trying to experience those again. It was a superficial recovery at first, but it was an important step as I started to let go a little. I chose to go to university and travel, even living abroad and eventually began a profession.

Throughout this period, SCOAN beliefs continued to affect me. I was convinced my “sins” would one day come back and haunt me. I always expected something terrible to happen to me or my family. But I would try and suppress these thoughts and be normal.

However, I could not hide my feelings for long and started being reckless with my life. I started taking risks I wouldn’t normally take, because I felt my wasted life didn’t matter anymore. SCOAN had robbed me of all my self esteem, self respect and of any purpose I had had.

The cracks started to show. I was drinking heavily and could never face my emotions, but could only let them out in drunken rants. I became extremely jealous of how stable my friends and colleagues appeared to be while I was falling apart on the inside.

After a small breakdown, I took a course of counselling at my University. An hour a week of solid crying and no progress made, I resigned myself to having to live with this fear and rejection.

A few years later, out of the blue, I heard of some SCOAN disciples were living nearby. I was convinced they were coming to find me and I would be forced back into SCOAN. I sobbed several times a day, at work, on public transport, at home, and I was scared to go out of my house in case they found me. I began fearing for my life and my mental stability.

At around the same time I heard leaks about how TBJ had sexually abused disciples. This time the breakdown was total. I was living with a psychologist at the time, and she encouraged me to get help. I started seeing a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist. Over the course of some months, she helped me to realise I still had many unhealthy beliefs, and I realised the fears I was living with were making me depressed and anxious. I had been repressing my fears and guilt for being involved for so long. CBT was the hardest thing I have ever done, as to relive my experiences was tough. However, with this help, I have finally faced up to my experiences. I no longer feel afraid.

Since coming to terms with my experiences I’ve spoken with other ex-disciples. In some ways their stories are harsher than mine. They experienced bullying and also physical and/or sexual abuse. One thing I had to realise was just because my abuse wasn’t physical (and I’ll never know why it wasn’t), it hasn’t meant that its effect has not been equally devastating.

It’s easy to excuse things that are wrong as being due to cultural or religious differences or a personality. But deep down there is a truth. I never questioned it when girls were going to TBJ’s room in the middle of the night and not coming back for hours. In fact (and I’m so ashamed of my blindness) I felt jealous of the extra guidance they were receiving. I hope that those still involved will come to see the truth.

Also the guilt has been hard to deal with. I think of people I encouraged to visit SCOAN. Those who went with faith that God would heal them who died as a result of the dangerous advice given at the church. And countless people, unknown to me, who spent their last savings coming from all over Africa and the world to be lied to and taken advantage of. SCOAN continues to cause so much needless suffering. Its victims include the poorest and most vulnerable.

SCOAN is not an innocent or well meaning organisation. In my experience it is one that will use all manner of cunning, corrupt and sacrilegious methods in order to bring people under their influence. I think often of those girls who continue to be abused and have no voice as they are fearful to speak out against what they believe is God. I think of them often and know I was lucky to escape.

And for those of you thinking of visiting, attracted by what seems impossible anywhere else in the world- I urge rationality and caution. Some things are too good to be true. No church is perfect. No one is perfect. Do not abandon your right to question as I did and be influenced to believe anything other than what you know in your heart to be true.

I left SCOAN and felt like I lost my moral compass. I had been told what was right and wrong for so long I lost all perspective. Since then I have not rediscovered my faith in God, but I have found my moral bearings. There is no religion that I know of in which bullying is acceptable. In no moral code is sexual abuse acceptable. Think rationally.

What is SCOAN?

SCOAN London

SCOAN is the Synagogue Church of All Nations. The headquarters is based in Lagos, Nigeria, but the branch in question is the London one. This branch is run by a team of evangelists under the direct oversight of TB Joshua in Nigeria. It is a registered charity (at least until the charities commission read the BBC article) and it currently meets at Bexleyheath Academy every Sunday at 11am (at least until they catch wind of what goes on at their premises). You can read more about them on their website: http://scoanlondon.wordpress.com/

Who is TB Joshua?

TB Joshua

TB Joshua is a controversial Nigerian pastor and prophet. He has a huge following within Nigeria, and a fast growing one internationally (mainly through his satellite TV channel Emmanuel TV). Below we have summarised some of the most concerning issues about him.

1. Numerous allegations of sexual abuse

For a number of years there have been an increasing number of allegations made about TB Joshua sexually abusing young girls at his church. The church has never investigated or addressed these serious allegations.

2. Dubious claims of divine healing

Anointing Water

Besides the deaths reported in a piece recently broadcast on the BBC, the authors of this site are aware of 4 other deaths under similar circumstances (not AIDS, but where they were told to stop medication and subsequently died). In 2005, after a large crusade at Botswanan National stadium, President Festus Mogae released a statement urging patients who had visited TB Joshua for healing, including those on the antiretroviral (ARV) therapy, to continue taking their medication. The fact the president had to take this unusual step lends enormous credence to this BBC story.

We recently told the story of Judith, a lady suffering from diabetes who was told by TB Joshua that she was healed, and to stop taking her medication. 2 days later she was in a coma. The comments on the story from SCOAN supporters were revealing. Rather than denying the truthfulness of her story they scolded her for the lack of faith that got her into this almost deadly predicament.

One reliable source we have spoken to tells us that of all those who have allegedly been healed of AIDS (i.e. they have had it medically verified), every single one is Nigerian. This does not represent the diversity of people who come to him for healing, but given the extent of corruption in Nigeria, it doesn’t take much to join the dots here. Previous supporters of TB Joshua have spoken out on this site about some of the trickery used in the portrayal of these so called “miracles”.

As mentioned in a recent BBC article, he widely distributes his special brand of “anointing water” which they claim is for “good health and breakthrough in all areas of your life and for the salvation of your soul“. Most Christians will instantly realise what a blasphemous claim the final part of that statement is! SCOAN adamently state that it is free, but this seems to be a misleading statement. It’s free in that it doesn’t have a price tag on it, but you don’t get it for nothing. Ex disciple Gareth explains more in this comment.

5. $10-$15 million of personal wealth

This Nigerian leader of a British registered charity has amassed a colossal fortune for himself. Forbes magazine rank him as the 3rd richest pastor in Nigeria. In the comments section of our article on this, ex disciple Gareth has some extremely insightful comments about how TB Joshua has become so rich:

8. He uses tragic events for self promotion

Regularly SCOAN release videos claiming that TB Joshua predicted a major world event before it happened. It’s difficult to see what the purpose is in this, considering the predictions are always too vague to be useful. Events he claims to have predicted include:

Why this site?

The authors behind this site have friends and family who are involved with SCOAN. We have seen the devastation it has wrought on these people’s lives. We hope that the information given here helps stop others from suffering the same fate.

What can you do to help?

The best way you can help is to link to this page and increase the exposure of this content. You can use the share button below to add it to your social network site.

Emma’s story has clearly struck a nerve with TB Joshua supporters. There have been a number of comments that we didn’t publish because of how unpleasant or threatening they were. “How dare you criticise a man of God?”, “The wrath of God will be coming upon you”, etc…

It’s interesting to remember that when Jesus was being arrested, one of his disciples attacked the soldiers with a sword, but Jesus rebuked the disciple and healed the injured soldier. When Jesus was on the cross he said “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”. Jesus was being murdered, yet he chose to utter words of forgiveness towards his murderers.

Even if Emma’s allegations were made up*, the kind of words coming in the comments are not Christlike, and totally devoid of grace, totally in contrast to how Jesus responded to far more serious offenses.

Any comments that we deem too personal or threatening we will delete. Feel free to ask questions or express doubts, but please do so in a Christlike and gracious way. You also may like to read the points on the “How to defend TB Joshua” post for some ideas on making your comments sound credible.

It’s important for readers to remember that TB Joshua is a man like any other, fallible and capable of corruption and sin. No one except for Emma, TB Joshua and God can say with absolute certainty whether or not these allegations are true. If this is a young woman who really has lost a third of her life to a cult and been sexually abused by a controlling cult leader, you need to be very careful how you respond to her.

* If we had any doubts about the allegations we wouldn’t have published them, but no – we can’t provide you with video evidence as one twitter user asked!

License

You are welcome to copy and redistribute anything you find on this website, as long as you redistribute it unaltered and do not make money from it. If you wish to use the content in any other ways, email tbjoshuawatch@hotmail.co.uk